The challenge of stretch!

[Mermaid Menanna]

I'm putting this out here for all others who may find it as challenging to work with spandex as I have over this past 2 wks. I expected to have my tail done over a week ago, yet here I sit, struggling and getting frustrated because there is just so much stretch to the fabric. I attribute some of the issue to deciding to line the entire tail, creating 4 layers to work with instead of 2.
The troubles started from the very beginning, trying to lay out the fabric and get the pattern to lay on it without wrinkles, then trying to cut the fabric without it shifting as I worked my way around. What I ended up with were 4 pieces of fabric that were all slightly "off" in their measurements from each other. Ugh!

This past weekend I took a day off and gave some thought to this project while not staring at it endlessly in frustration. I decided on a new approach that is working wonderfully, and I am finally making progress much faster... so... I want to share it with others who may be confronting the same difficulties.

Working with the average fabric, pinning the outer edges is usually enough to get what is needed, both for cutting and sewing. With spandex, the fabric wrinkles anytime you touch it, (seems like it wrinkles just looking at it) and then there are ripples where there shouldn't be. As I have pinned the outer edges, I have stopped about every 6 inches to pin the CENTER of the pattern/fabric, too. This requires a LOT of pins to accomplish, but, the wrinkle problem has been brought under control.

The other "tool" I have found very useful is masking tape. Taping 1 edge of the fabric to the table or floor has prevented it from shifting as I work through the pinning process, keeping the top lines of the 2 layers of fabric firmly in place as I work. At one point I taped top and bottom edges of the fabric to the floor before placing my pattern onto it, and then pinned & cut. When finished it peels off easily without leaving any marks or adhesive behind.

Lastly, I have discovered that sewing 1 piece of liner to 1 piece of spandex, THEN going back and putting those 2 newly sewn pieces together is MUCH easier than trying to align 4 pieces at once and keeping them in place securely until sewn.

I hope this helps to save others from the frustration this "fun" project has caused me. Hubby says I'm a perfectionist, and that may be the case... but when I make something I want it to be the best that it can be. Trial and error are a wonderful learning experience, but can be maddeningly frustrating at the same time. Money is tight so I only get 1 shot at getting this right, so perfection, be it what it may, is important to me. I have no desire to be a lopsided mermaid, lol.

Here is a photo of how I pinned 1 layer of liner to 1 layer of spandex and found success:
29638

[Mermaid Alea]

Wow you had to do a lot of pinning and taping! I just pinned the border and then cut it. I didn't really get any issues and the thing you have to remember is you will be sewing the fabric together so as long as you don't get it extremely uneven, if it is a little off you won't see it once it is sewn together. Once sewn and you try it on and it fits, you turn it inside-out and cut off the extra fabric from the edge.

From your photo, you will definitely be fine with it being just a tad off like that because you will be cutting off that part anyways after it is sewn. ;)

[Mermaid Jaffa]

With that tall waist, it will go over your belly button and past your boobs! I cut my waist right at the curve where it starts to bend inwards. It fits well and once elasticated does not flap open.

[Mermaid Menanna]

I left the waist that high on purpose, not sure where I wanted it to fit with elastic and wanting to leave that open to trying it on to decide.

As for the trimming of the "extra" from the seams, I won't be trimming all of it, so needed to make sure I had plenty of seam line left. I am planning to put boning into the fluke area and the casing for it will attach to those extra pieces of fabric on the inside of the seams before I can figure out what can/can't be trimmed...

[Seatan]

Better too high than too low. You can always make it shorter, even by folding it down, but you can't make it taller! Can't wait to see it finished!

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